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Stop Wasting Time on Marketing: 7 Easy Tricks

Getting time back essentially happens as the result of two actions. The first is removing marketing tactics from a strategy. The second is finding a way to execute the same tactics in a faster way. Both of these are extremely powerful but difficult to execute. Use the following tips as a way to stop wasting time on your marketing efforts.

7 Tricks for More Efficient Marketing

1. Eliminate the "We Have Always Done it This Way" Tactics: Just because something has been done the same way for 20 years, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. Instead, it's just an easy excuse for not adapting and improving. Reexamine and analyze tactics that haven't changed in a long time, and determine if they're still worth the time and effort, instead of simply assuming they should be part of your strategy.

2. Double Down on What Works: As a marketer, you have metrics that indicate the success of your efforts. A great marketer should not be measured by how much work he or she has done. Instead, all evaluations should be about the results their work has produced. In a world of results-focused marketing, the most powerful thing that you can do is double down on the strategies and tactics that are working to produce greater results, and eliminate or improve on the ones that aren't.

3. Time Box Projects: Managing time is hard. As a marketer, one simple trick can help. It's called time boxing. Do you really need to spend 2 hours a day monitoring and responding in social media? The internet won't collapse if you don't. Instead, try setting a time limit on each marketing activity you do. For example, allocate 30 minutes a day for social media. Time boxing will force you to be more efficient in how you use your time and help you to be more results-focused.

4. Trim Administrative Time: Attending meetings and conducting reporting are some of the biggest marketing time-sucks around. Don't let them eat away at your work day. Reduce the time of recurring meetings. Work to automate the reporting of results using marketing analytics software to cut back on the time you spend on administrative tasks.

5. Set an Active Project Limit: Trying to juggle too many balls results in a bunch of dropped balls. The same thing is true for marketing tactics. Trying to do too much at once kills focus. Set a limit to how many marketing tactics or projects can be occurring at once. This will improve focus and force you to finish some tasks before moving on to others.

6. Use Data to Make Decisions: Data is powerful. Use it. Be sure you are conducting A/B tests and have marketing analytics set up. Use this actionable data to make decisions about future marketing priorities.

7. Just Say No: This trick is easily the most difficult. It's also the most valuable. Saying no to extra "stuff" that people ask you to do that has no value to your team's performance can send countless hours of time back into your day. If it isn't going to drive results, say no. You can do it!